1–What is the title of your latest release? GHOST ISLAND 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? Jessica Niemi goes to an isolated island to take some time off but has to face a death woman and a legend of a ghost that keeps haunting the archipelago. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I always wanted to place a story on the Åland archipelago. It’s a marvelous place. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Yes, definitely. It would be really interesting to meet her. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Complex, smart, multidimensional. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? Some new facts about the World War II. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? I usually write a first version completely and then start to edit. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence? Finnish salty licorice 9–Describe your writing space/office! It’s a cozy office room with a door I can keep closed while writing. 10–Who is an author you admire? Paul Auster 11–Is there a book that changed your life? Probably The Animal Farm by George Orwell 12–Tell us about when…

Detective Sergeant Jessica Niemi watches a squirrel scamper across the road in its self-grown winter coat, then climb a fat tree trunk with surprising speed. Nature’s little miracles, like the agility of the gravity-defying rodent, have never ceased to amaze her. With the passing years, she seems to yearn for nature more and more, perhaps to create distance between herself and the tragedies and horrific fates she encounters on the job. However, her love of nature isn’t the reason Jessica has ventured into Helsinki’s Central Park on this gloomy January evening. The squirrel disappears, but Jessica can hear its tiny claws scrabble against the bark and see branches sway high up in the tree. The path running through the dense forest is dark, and the icy drizzle has kept all but a few fitness enthusiasts inside. Jessica brought a flashlight, but so far she has managed with the lamps spaced sparsely at intervals along the path. She zips up her windbreaker with the fingers of her left hand. Her right arm still dangles in a sling—not because it’s necessary in terms of recovery, but because her arm muscles throb every time the wrist she injured in mid-December isn’t supported. A…